Details About Izmir

Destinations » Mediterranean » Mediterranean - Eastern » Izmir


The beautifully-restored ruins of Ephesus near Izmir bring history to life. Ephesus is where Paul preached to the Ephesians, where St John wrote the Gospel and where the Virgin Mary died.
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Attractions

The clock tower at Konak Square is Izmir's landmark today. It was built by architect Raymond Charles Pere in 1901 to commemorate 25th year of enthronement of Ottoman sultan Abdulhamit I. Roman aquaducts were built on the Meles (Kemer) river to bring fresh water to the city. They're from late Roman period and double arches were built by bricks and stones stick together with Roman mortar. Same aquaducts were restored and used also by Byzantines, Seljuks and Ottomans. Today only few sections left from a long aquaduct which can be seen at Sirinyer (old Kizilcullu) district driving from the airport to the city center.

Shopping

The historical Kemeralti neighborhood in Konak district is the best known local shopping market in Izmir. Originally it was built around 17th century right behind the harbor and expanded in the following centuries as the port was silted in. Original shops were made of wood or bricks, some covered with domes. The name Kemeralti (under arches) comes from the fact that there were streets covered with arches with all the shops underneath. Besides small shops, there were many inns as well. Starting from 20th century it became a shopping area of mainly middle class people as it offered very reasonable prices. Today, besides vaulted and domed shops of the past, here you can find modern business centers, stores, movie theaters, and cafeterias. All kinds of traditional Turkish handicrafts, ceramic ware, wooden objects, clothing, leather and kilims are sold in the markets, including food and fish for your daily shopping. Kemeralti consists one of the most frequented neighborhoods of the city today, especially by local people.

Currency

The local currency is the Turkish lira.

 
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